US Open finalist Jessica Pegula will miss the China Open after losing in the round of 16 to Spain’s Paula Badosa.
The American world No. 3, seeded second in Beijing, lost 6-4, 6-0 in just an hour.
At the early break, Badosa was down 3-1 in the opening set, but the Spaniard won 11 of his next 12 games (including eight straight) to secure his first win over a top-five player since 2022.
“She is one of the players I would never want to face,” said world number 19 Badosa.
“She’s very hard, hits very flat, changes direction very well, so I knew it was going to be tough.
“I prepared for battle yesterday, but I think everything went pretty well today.”
She will meet Zhang Shuai in the quarter-finals after the world number 595 continued her stunning performance at the tournament with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Poland’s Magdalena Frech.
Zhang entered the home event after losing 24 straight matches spanning over 600 days. This is the second longest on the WTA Tour in the open era, which began in 1968 when professional players were finally able to compete in Grand Slam tournaments.
The two-time Grand Slam quarterfinalist has been hampered by injuries and is the lowest-ranked player ever to enter the main draw of the China Open, a WTA 1000 event.
But the 35-year-old won all four matches in Beijing without losing a set, including a second-round victory over US Open semi-finalist Emma Navarro.
